Agricultural management and innovation
We are the research team of the Master's degree programme in Agricultural Management and Innovation at the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria at the Steyr Campus.
Our core values are characterised by sustainability, efficiency and a spirit of innovation. We work with passion and expertise to shape the agriculture of tomorrow and develop innovative solutions for current challenges.
We endeavour to drive agriculture forward through pioneering research projects. We are currently involved in the NextGen:CropCare and Added Value Mountain Farming projects to research sustainable technologies and methods that create real added value for agriculture.
Events
Agricultural Conference Added Value:Agriculture
The agricultural conference ‘Added Value:Agriculture’, led by the Agricultural Management and Innovation degree programme, is dedicated to the future of agriculture. Digitalisation has revolutionised the agricultural landscape thanks to technical innovations and artificial intelligence. The focus is on new challenges such as security of supply and sustainable food production. Our programme offers keynote speeches by experts on agricultural topics of the future, networking between education, business and politics as well as an ideas competition for students on sustainable production.
Current projects
Added value mountain farming
In the project, people involved in science and agriculture are working together to emphasise the services of mountain agriculture in the region better than before with the help of an innovative approach and to put them to profitable use. To this end, the services are being analysed, quantified and marketable business models developed. This should contribute to the generation of alternative income for agricultural businesses.
NextGen:CropCare
The ‘NextGen:CropCare’ research project of FH OÖ Forschungs und Entwicklungs GmbH aims to investigate the practicability of autonomous hoeing robots in Austrian agriculture. The aim is to reduce the use of pesticides and promote integrated crop protection. A field trial with the ‘Farming GT’ hoeing robot from Farming Revolution GmbH is being carried out in various crops in order to evaluate efficiency and cost-effectiveness. The results should help farmers to make informed decisions and optimise the use of the technology, which will contribute to the sustainability of agriculture.
Serve-U
The Serve-U research project focuses on the development of a user-centred energy service platform that enables energy communities to use precise forecast data for load and generation patterns. The platform offers system-optimised utilisation options and enables technology-neutral integration of various energy sources, in particular photovoltaics. Users are actively involved by providing self-learning recommendations for action and utilising existing sensor technology (smart meters, inverters). In addition to technical aspects, social aspects, incentive structures, business models and legal framework conditions are also taken into account.
Sender
The SENDER research project takes into account that consumers/prosumers are at the centre of the energy market by directly involving them in a co-creation process with other energy stakeholders, while carrying out processes to design, develop and use proactive load management mechanisms. These mechanisms will be combined with cross-sectoral and value-added services defined according to consumer/prosumer preferences.
Contact Agricultural management and innovation
FH-Prof. MMag. Dr. Michael Schmidthaler
Studiengangsleiter